Die for removing superfluous molten tin from wires



Sept. 1, 1925. 1,551,751

E. J. KOZAK.

DIE FOR REMOVING SUPERFLUOUS MOLTEN TIN FROM WIRES Filed Jan. 23, 1925 J fdzdard f [{0 BMW 11 Patented Sept. 1,1925. 7 V

"UNITED STATES.

PATENT OFFICE;

EDWARD J. KOZAK, OF CICERO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO BELDEN MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF CHICAGOQ'ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION ,OF ILLINOIS.

DIE FOR REMOVING SUPERFLUOUS MOLTEN TIN FROM WIRES.

Application fi1ed- Jan uary,23,i1925. Serial No. 4,145.

To all whom it mayconcem: i

Be 'it known that I, EDWARD J KozAK, a citizen of the United States, and a resident ofCicero, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Dies for Removing superfluous Molten Tin from Wires, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in dies for removing molten tin from wires, and has particular reference to cleaning off such superfluous tin from copper electrical conductors at the close of the. tinning operation. During such tinning operation itis customary to run the copper wires through a bath of acid, or other suitable flux, before conducting the wire into the molten tin bath. After the wire emerges from the bath of molten tin, the removal of the superfluous: tin metal so as to leave the finished wire of an accurate size and free from excess tin v presents considerable difficulty. I have discovered that the best way in which to remove such superfluous metal and clean the finished wire is to pass the wire through a die as it emerges from the'bath of tin.

The principal objects of my invention are to provide an improved die for the purpose described and also an improved holder therefor which will not be acted upon detrimentally by the acid or other flux, or by the molten tin; to provide a holder which when displaced will float upon the surface retrieved and readjusted on the wire'and,

in generahto provide,animproved die and holder of the character referred to.

In the drawings accompanying my invention I have illustrated preferred embodiment of my invention, and in said draw-' 1ngs gig. 1 is a plan View ofa die and holder an Fig. 2 is a section taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Referring to the drawings Figure 10 represents a crystallineor other material of the requisite hardness to withstand the wear incident to the passage of the wire through the central aperture 11. Said crystalline body 10 may be a diamond or similar stone and, as shown, is set intoa holder 12 preferably circular in shape and of euficient dimensions to enable the holder Withits contained diamond to be convenientlyhandled without danger of loss. This is an mportant feature for the reason that the diamond itself, 'after having been prop erly drilled to receive and transmit the wire, is quite expensive;

It will be manifest that the diamond or other hard body should be held in the holder rigidly and securely without relative movement therein and without danger of its becoming displaced from the holder and consequently lost. In order to secure this result, I prefer to cast the holder 12 around the die-proper 10 so that, when finished, the

diamond will be invested in the casting with its apertures exposed, as'shown in Fig, 2.

i I have found that the most convenient or practical temperature for the molten tin, which is used for tinning the wires, ranges from 5509 'F; to 600F. A number of metals will'withstand such a temperature, but most of them have the disadvantage that they cannot be cast successfully around a diamond or analagous crystalline body, or they cannot withstand the disintegrating or alloying action of the molten tin. Furthermore, before my invention, no one has produced a holder of the character described which will float upon the surface of the molten tin bath. This is obviously a feature of considerable importance as everybody knows that molten tin'is not transparent, and the fishing for a sunken die is a tiresome and tedious undertaking.-

After numerous tests, experiments and failures I have discovered that although the metal aluminum by itself will not ordinarily be satisfactory, on account of'its relatively low melting point, its disadvantages may be eliminated and its inherent advantages retained by, alloying the pure aluminum with from 10 to 30% of another base metal or metals, such as, zinc and copper, preferably a combination of two ofsuch metals. The composition of an alloy which I have successfully employed for this purpose is as follows:

Per cent. Aluminum s Zinc 10 Copper 5 A die holder made of such an alloy can be successfully cast around a crystalline die, it will be of sufliciently low specific gravity to float on the surface of the molten tin, it will not be affected by the acid or other flux and will not disintegrate due to the high temperature of the molten bath, or the alloying action of the tin. Die holders 'constructed of such metal'have been used byme very successfully for long periods "without any substantial deterioration. The described details of construction being illustrative of only a single application of-my invention, the scope of same should be determined by reference to the appended claims, said claims being construed as broadly as possible consistent with the state of the art. 7

'I claim as my invention: '1. A die for stripping superfluous molten tin from a wire which comprises a crystalline body apertured to fit the Wll'Q, and a holder therefor composed of metal of higher melting point and of less specific gravity than molten tin and immune from attack by molten tin or the tinni'ng flux.

2. In combination, a crystalline body apertured tohfit the wire for the purpose described,-and aholder for said body composed of a metal melting at a temperature higher than 600 F, and buoyant in molten tin maintained at said temperature.

3. A die holder for the purpose described made of an alloy containing sufficient alumi-v num to render it buoyant in molten tin,

maintained at a temperature of 550 to 600 F., and suflicient other base metal to prevent it from fusing or disintegrating in said bath of molten tin.

5. A die holder for the purpose described containing between 70% and 90% aluminum and from 10 to 30% of a base metal having a. melting point higher than that of aluminum. A

6. A die holder for the purposedescribcd composed of between 70% and 90% of aluminum and containing in the aggregate copper and zinc from 10 to 30%.

,7. A die holder for the purpose described 1 comprisinga casting having substantially the following composition:

Per Cent.

Aluminum 85 Zinc 10 Copper 5 EDXVARD J. KOZAK. 

